Mobile won the platform war on distribution, not capability

▤ Summary

This article argues that mobile won the platform war mainly because it controlled distribution, not because it delivered superior software capability. It contrasts mobile’s gatekeeper-driven app stores with the web’s update-channel advantages and uses Electron-based desktop apps as evidence that fast maintainer-led delivery still works. It also explains why PWAs struggled on iOS, focusing on Apple’s control over runtime, installability, and notifications. The piece closes by describing how mobile platform hardening gradually raised the cost of shipping apps and reduced the hobbyist developer long tail. It frames the real competition as channel control and re-engagement, not native versus web rendering.

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